UFC 131 is right around the corner and the main event will feature two of the hardest-hitting men in the sport, Junior dos Santos and Shane Carwin. This fight is not only for a chance to face Cain Velasquez for the UFC heavyweight championship, but also could be one of the most brutal knockouts in UFC history.

Shane Carwin has not fought since fighting Brock Lesnar in a losing effort at UFC 116 for the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world. In that fight, he caught Lesnar but punched himself out and ended up losing via submission in the second round.

Since that fight, Carwin has had back surgery and has also lost 30 lbs. He appears to be in the best shape of his life, and now has yet another chance to be back on top in the heavyweight division.

Junior dos Santos is one of those guys who comes along once in a lifetime. His striking ability is easily top-tier pound for pound in the world, but his ground game is unknown. He trains with the Nogueira Brothers, and is a BJJ brown belt. In all truth, he looks like the fighter that is the perfect mix of both Nogueira brothers.

Dos Santos has been to decision only once in his entire career and that was in his most recent bout against Roy Nelson. It would take a Mack Truck to knock him out. This fight means everything to Dos Santos, since he is already the No. 1 contender, but in order to stay active, he decided to put his title on the line and face Shane Carwin.

This fight has virtually zero chance of going to decision. In a combined 26 fights, there has only been one decision in that span and 18 total fights ended due to strikes. Carwin has the advantage in the wrestling department, but JDS has the better striking. Carwin had more power in his fists in previous fights, but losing 30 lbs leaves a big question mark in that equation.

This fight could, and should, be the heavyweight fight of the year and has a chance at being KO of the year. If you are a fan of the knockout, then this is a fight that you must see.

Now we will discuss the 10 greatest knockouts in UFC history. After this weekend, this fight may make this list.

Honorable Mention

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Carlos Condit vs. Dan Hardy UFC 120

Travis Browne vs. Stefan Struve UFC 130

Gerard Gordeau vs. Teila Tuli UFC 1

There are many knockouts that will not be mentioned on here because I am saving those for a later article. So please enjoy.

10. Rashad Evans vs. Lyoto Machida: UFC 98

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Rashad Evans and Lyoto Machida met at UFC 98 for the light heavyweight championship of the world.

Lyoto had defeated everyone put in front of him and this was obviously his biggest challenge to that point.

When it mattered most, he shined.

In the second round, Lyoto caught Rashad, and as much as Rashad tried to recover, he just couldn't.

That led to a flurry by Machida. With one flush shot, Evans was out cold and Machida was the new UFC light heavyweight champion.

9. Rashad Evans vs. Chuck Liddell: UFC 88 Breakthrough

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The winner of UFC 88, Evans versus Liddell, got a shot at the new champion, Forrest Griffin.

Not many knew what to expect from this fight.

My personal opinion was I thought that this was the fight to put Liddell back on the right track, but wow was I wrong.

This fight ended with one of the greatest knockouts your eyes could see.

This set up Evans with his title shot with Forrest, which he ended up winning.

8. Rashad Evans vs. Sean Salmon: UFC Fight Night

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This was the big test for Rashad to see if he was ready for big names in the division.

Salmon actually looked really good the whole first round and arguably won that round.

The second round was a different story, and Rashad threw up that head kick and Salmon went to sleep.

This fight sent Evans to contender status which eventually led to him winning the championship.

7. Tank Abbott vs John Matua UFC 6: Clash of the Titans

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This fight, for people who haven't watched MMA for very long, took place back when MMA was viewed as barbaric.

This was one of the most painful knockouts in MMA history.

Matua was in trouble right as the bell rang. Abbott has heavy hands (no chin) and he put them to work to score this very painful-looking KO.

6. Anderson Silva vs. Vitor Belfort: UFC 126

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Vitor vs. Anderson had the makings for a war.

Vitor started out and it appeared he wanted to engage and Anderson was being reserved.

Well, Anderson made the correct decision and caught Vitor with a front kick and scored the monumental KO.

Anderson has the longest winning streak in UFC history, and he is arguably the greatest of all time.

5. Rich Franklin vs. Nate Quarry UFC 56: Full Force

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Nate Quarry was really liked from the Ultimate Fighter Season 1.

He went into the UFC (he sustained an injury on show and couldn't fight) and won three fights in a row and was granted a shot at the UFC middleweight championship against Rich Franklin.

No disrespect to Quarry, but he was nowhere near the level of a fighter that Franklin was at the time of that fight and it showed, which led to a brutal KO victory for Rich Franklin.

4. Lyoto Machida vs. Randy Couture: UFC 129

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This was Randy Couture's last chance at greatness.

There were many ways that people thought that Couture could win, with the most popular being to hold Lyoto against the cage and land the take-down.

That didn't happen.

The first round was all over the place, but Machida landed the better shots and took the first round.

The second round started off the same as the first, but the video above will tell you how it went.

This KO loss marked the end of a lengendary career and boosted Machida back into the title picture.

3. BJ Penn vs. Caol Uno UFC 34: High Voltage

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This was BJ Penn's third professional fight, and it was also for a chance to face Jens Pulver for the UFC lightweight championship if he were to win.

Uno was a seasoned veteran and already had a 15-4-2 record going into this fight.

The fight starts, then next thing you know BJ throws a flurry of punches and connects. Eleven seconds later, the fight is over and Uno appears to be dead.

BJ exited the cage and ran to the back, showing that he did his job and that he is ready for Pulver. He lost the fight to Pulver via majority decision, but eventually avenged the loss years later.

2. Mirko Cro Cop vs Gabriel Gonzaga UFC 70 Nation's Collide

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As a Cro Cop fan, this KO is hard to watch.

Cro Cop was expected to win this fight and go on to face Randy Couture for the heavyweight championship of the world.

Cro Cop had just won the Pride Open-Weight Grand Prix just seven months prior to this fight, and also was coming off of a TKO win over Eddie Sanchez in his UFC debut.

Gonzaga went into this fight as a heavy underdog and defeated Cro Cop with Cro Cop's signature kick. An epic knockout, it is arguably the best, but it is hard to decide.

1. Dan Henderson vs Michael Bisping UFC 100

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No. 1 on our list is the beautiful KO that Dan Henderson scored on Michael Bisping at UFC 100.

They were coaches for the Ultimate Fighter, and they obviously did not like each other.

Bisping talked alot during the season which fueled the fire, and the video above will show you why this is the best KO in UFC history.